A number of proteolytic enzymes such as elastase and collagenase have been shown to be involved in diseases such as pulmonary emphysema which involve tissue destruction. The goal of this research is to design and synthesize specific and effective inhibitors for these proteolytic enzymes. The inhibitors will be tested for effectiveness and specificity with a variety of enzymes. The inhibitors should be invaluable in the study of the normal biological function and the role of these proteases in disease. Synthetic protease inhibitors should find use in the clinical treatment of pulmonary emphysema, rheumatoid arthritis and other diseases.